Some Charlotte County Public Schools (CCPS) will soon lose their eligibility for the free meal program. Starting next school year, only certain schools can continue offering free breakfast and lunch to all students under the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), which is federally funded.
The CEP helps schools in low-income areas serve meals at no cost to every student, with no paperwork required. Since 2022, after Hurricane Ian, every CCPS school has been part of CEP, and all students have received free meals. That’s about to change. The federal government has updated the rules. Now, only schools with enough students directly certified for assistance programs like SNAP, TANF, or Medicaid can qualify. Some schools no longer meet the cutoff.
For the next four years, these eight CCPS schools will continue to provide free meals to every student:…